Quick Notes on Sunday's Films/Monday's TBA'S/Don't Forget to Rate Those Films

Good Labor Day Friends!  We're headed back to the real world this morning.  Don't forget to rate films!

QUICK NOTES ON SUNDAY'S FILMS

THE HOMESMAN...It's beautifully shot and understandably is drawing mixed responses (about which I can't talk without giving away too much).  Hilary Swank may well be in the Best Actress conversation when it's all said and done.  3.5/5

MAGICIAN...The Orson Welles doc is well done and reminds you why and how Welles was the genius he was...but it's not particularly revelatory. 3.5/5

TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT...The Dardennes with Marion Cotillard.  Now, I love me some Cotillard but this story of a woman trying to keep her job...slow...repetitive...and did I mention slow? 2.5/5



MONDAY'S TBA'S

Monday TBAs

Palm    4:15PM    ROSEWATER

Palm    7:15PM    BIRDMAN                          

Galaxy  1:00PM    THE IMITATION GAME

Galaxy  3:45PM    (SNEAK) ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST

Galaxy  6:30PM    FOXCATCHER

Chuck Jones   1:15PM    WILD

Chuck Jones   4:00PM    BIRDMAN

Herzog   9:15AM     THREE SHORT FILMS ABOUT PEACE

Herzog   12:30PM    FOXCATCHER

Herzog   3:30PM     THE IMITATION GAME

Herzog   6:15PM     ROSEWATER

Herzog   8:45PM     WILD

Opera House   1:15PM    THE HOMESMAN

Opera House   4:30PM    WILD TALES

Opera House   7:30PM    MR. TURNER

  

Nugget  1:30PM   ‘71

Nugget  4:15PM   MERCHANTS OF DOUBT

Nugget  7:15PM   MOMMY

Masons   1:45PM    THE 50 YEAR ARGUMENT               

Masons   4:15PM    TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT

Masons   6:45PM    MADAME BOVARY

  

Le Pierre   2:00PM   CALIFORNIA SPLIT   (FREE)

Le Pierre   4:45PM   DIPLOMACY

Le Pierre   6:45PM   SEYMOUR: AN INTRODUCTION

Backlot   2:00PM    BERTOLUCCI ON BERTOLUCCI

Backlot   4:30PM    MAGICIAN

Backlot   6:45PM    HOW TO SMELL A ROSE

Abel Gance  8:30PM   THE HOMESMAN  (preceded by LAVA and FEAST)

• SNEAK 

 THREE SHORT FILMS ABOUT PEACE                   Herzog/Monday 9:15AM Q&A

Errol Morris is best known for his interrogations of humanity's dark complexity, including portrayals of two American engineers of war, Robert McNamara, in THE FOG OF WAR (TFF 30) and Donald Rumsfeld, in THE UNKNOWN KNOWN (TFF 40). Here, Morris turns his camera 180 degrees, creating three inspiring portraits of courageous figures who dare to confront the worst Goliaths of our times. In THE DREAM, the Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee recounts the coalition of Liberian women whom, without brandishing a weapon or uttering a word of disrespect, stopped one of the longest, most vicious wars in modern history. THE SHIPYARD shows how Lech Walesa, a Polish electrician and Nobel Laureate, rallied workers to challenge the repressive Soviet Union, succeeding where 30-plus years of Cold War aggression failed. And in THE MOMENT, rockstar Bob Geldof tells how he transformed his commitment and some guilt (along with a phenomenal Rolodex) into an ongoing, 30-year struggle to eradicate hunger in Africa. Morris, one of cinema’s most insightful, inquisitive and expressionistic artists, reminds us of his deep, heartful comprehension of the indomitable human spirit. He created these films in conjunction with the New York Times’ Op-Docs series. (U.S., 2014, 49m total) In person: Errol Morris

• SNEAK                       

ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST                                  

Galaxy/Monday 3:45PM

Nick (Josh Hutcherson) and Dylan (Brady Corbet), two Canadian brothers, discover an idyllic surfing beach on the coast of Colombia, where Nick eyes Maria (Claudia Traisac), an idealistic local girl who works with the poor. But this love story has a dark side: Maria’s wealthy, very protective uncle is Pablo Escobar (Benicio Del Toro), the country’s biggest narco-trafficker, and one of the most dangerous men alive. Writer-director Andrea Di Stefano ingeniously mixes fact and fiction in this disturbing thriller, with Hutcherson (Jennifer Lawrence’s love interest in the Hunger Games movies) giving a touching performance as an ordinary guy stumbling headlong into terror and violence, holding his own opposite one of the most charismatic actors alive. And Del Toro, with his mixture of avuncular sweetness, self-mythologizing grandiosity and cobra-like cruelty, may well have been born to play Escobar. (France-Spain-Belgium, 2014, 120m) In person: Andrea Di Stefano

• Seminar  Town Park/Monday Noon

CRAFTING PERFORMANCE: HOW DO DIRECTORS ELICIT THE BEST WORK FROM ACTORS?

With Ramin Bahrani, Sophie Barthes and additional panelists to be announced.

Moderated by Annette Insdorf

• Conversation  Courthouse/Monday 11AM

Errol Morris and Guy Maddin in conversation with Dennis Jakob, whose credits include: creative consultant, APOCALYPSE NOW; editor, SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY; author, Summer With Morris (biography of Jim Morrison); advisor to both Guy Maddin and Errol Morris.

DON'T FORGET TO RATE THOSE FILMS

Now that we're down to Telluride weekend, here's your reminder...Don't forget to join in on "The People's Telluride".  Rate the films you see this week on a 0-5 scale ( 0 being just abysmal and 5 being a masterpiece).  You can rate each day or do them all at the end of the fest.  Send film ratings to me via Twitter (@Gort2) or email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or comment to the blog itself.

Sunday TBAs and Sneaks/ Quick Takes of Day Two Films/Name Drops/Day Three/Rate Films

Hope your Festival is going as well as mine is...I have had a great first two days of TFF #41.


SUNDAY TBA'S AND SNEAKS

Sunday TBAs

CJC/Sun 12:15PM       (SNEAK) ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST - Q&A

Masons/Sun 1:30PM     MAGICIAN     FREE    

SOH/Sun 3:30PM        TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT 

Nugget/Sun 3:30PM     RED ARMY     Q&A

Galaxy/Sun 4PM          ROSEWATER        

Pierre/Sun 6:30PM      50 YEAR ARGUMENT                           

Nugget/ 8:45PM         MOMMY   Q&A                                                     

Masons/Sun 9PM    WILD TALES       

Pierre/Sun 9:15PM      Student Prints  FREE

CJC/Sun 11:55PM       KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON   FREE

Seminar

FROM REAL TO REEL: HOW DOES A FILM SHAPE FACT?

with Jon Stewart, Bennett Miller, Gael García Bernal, Yann Demange, Regis Wargnier, Jean-Marc Vallée

Moderated by Annette Insdorf

SNEAK PREVIEW   ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST   Chuck Jones/Sun 12:15PM Q&A

Nick (Josh Hutcherson) and Dylan (Brady Corbet), two Canadian brothers, discover an idyllic surfing beach on the coast of Colombia, where Nick eyes Maria (Claudia Traisac), an idealistic local girl who works with the poor. But this love story has a dark side: Maria’s wealthy, very protective uncle is Pablo Escobar (Benicio Del Toro), the country’s biggest narco-trafficker, and one of the most dangerous men alive. Writer-director Andrea Di Stefano ingeniously mixes fact and fiction in this disturbing thriller, with Hutcherson (Jennifer Lawrence’s love interest in the Hunger Games movies) giving a touching performance as an ordinary guy stumbling headlong into terror and violence, holding his own opposite one of the most charismatic actors alive. And Del Toro, with his mixture of avuncular sweetness, self-mythologizing grandiosity and cobra-like cruelty, may well have been born to play Escobar. (France-Spain-Belgium, 2014, 120m) In person: Andrea Di Stefano

MONDAY SNEAK PREVIEW     THREE SHORT FILMS ABOUT PEACE    Herzog/Monday 9:15AM Q&A

Errol Morris is best known for his interrogations of humanity's dark complexity, including portrayals of two American engineers of war, Robert McNamara, in THE FOG OF WAR (TFF 30) and Donald Rumsfeld, in THE UNKNOWN KNOWN (TFF 40). Here, Morris turns his camera 180 degrees, creating three inspiring portraits of courageous figures who dare to confront the worst Goliaths of our times. In THE DREAM, the Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee recounts the coalition of Liberian women whom, without brandishing a weapon or uttering a word of disrespect, stopped one of the longest, most vicious wars in modern history. THE SHIPYARD shows how Lech Walesa, a Polish electrician and Nobel Laureate, rallied workers to challenge the repressive Soviet Union, succeeding where 30-plus years of Cold War aggression failed. And in THE MOMENT, rockstar Bob Geldof tells how he transformed his commitment and some guilt (along with a phenomenal Rolodex) into an ongoing, 30-year struggle to eradicate hunger in Africa. Morris, one of cinema’s most insightful, inquisitive and expressionistic artists, reminds us of his deep, heartful comprehension of the indomitable human spirit. He created these films in conjunction with the New York Times’ Op-Docs series. (U.S., 2014, 49m total) In person: Errol Morris

   

QUICK TAKES OF DAY TWO FILMS

FOXCATCHER:  Bennett Miller directs with such assuredness as to be a little unworldly.  Fantastic performances from the three leads, Steve Carell, Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo.  Truly wonderful work all around. 4.5/5

RED ARMY: Solid doc work from Gabe Polsky focusing on the Russian Men's Hockey team from the 1980's Cold war era through perestroika and the fall of then wall right up to today.  Stirring and often funny.  3.5/5

WILD TALES: Argentinian episodic film of mostly comic aspirations.  The opening sequence is the funniest and strongest.  Thereafter, it's sporadically comic.  3.5/5

BIRDMAN:  Authentic genius and Alejandro Inarritu's best film (and that's saying something).  Venice raves are dead on.  Beautifully realized from start to finish on all fronts.  Michael Keaton is a revelation. OSCAR thy name is KEATON or it should be.  Great work from the rest f the cast but special mention for Edward Norton and Emma Stone..  It's Inarritu's masterpiece. 5/5

NAME DROPS

I had really kept this largely quiet, but the Mrs. and I were invited to Fox Searchlight's party this year and stopped in for about an hour Saturday night.  Persons of Interest: Jon Stewart, Gael Garcia Bernal, Alejandro Inarritu, Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Morten Tyldum (director of The Imitation Game) Cheryl Strayed (the author of "Wild").

Also got to hang with buds: Sasha Stone, Tomris Laffley and Chris Schiller.

DAY THREE

Plans are to catch the Hilary Swank tribute at 8:30 at the Chuck and the ensuing presentation of "The Homesman".  After that the day is kind of open.  In consideration: "Magician", "Two Days, One Night", "Leviathan", "Escobar: Paradise Lost", "The Look of Silence", "The Price of Fame", and "Merchants of Doubt".  Also wouldn't mind catching at least some of the Justin Kauffin concert in Elks Park and maybe laying eyes on the master: Quincey Jones.

RATE THOSE FILMS

Now that we're down to Telluride weekend, here's your reminder...Don't forget to join in on "The People's Telluride".  Rate the films you see this week on a 0-5 scale ( 0 being just abysmal and 5 being a masterpiece).  You can rate each day or do them all at the end of the fest.  Send film ratings to me via Twitter (@Gort2) or email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or comment to the blog itself.

I'll collect all of that data and post the collective ratings from we, The People.

More tomorrow...

Follow me on Twitter @Gort2

Quick Comments on Wild, Imitation Game and RosewaterSaturday's TBAs and Sneaks

Good Saturday Film Fans...

QUICK COMMENTS ON WILD, IMITATION GAME AND ROSEWATER

Wild:  Reese Witherspoon is rather good and Laura Dern is also fine in a story/film that lacks from dramatic tension. 3 of 5

Imitation Game: Morten Tyldum with a winner here.  Solid work and a great script.  Benedict Cumberbatch delivers a sterling performance.  Also exceptional work from Matthew Goode, Mark Strong and Charles Dance in support and a stunning debut for Alex Lawther as the young Alan Turing.  This is a true story that needs to be seen! 4.5 of 5

Rosewater:  A film I admire more than love.  First time director Jon Stewart makes fully reasonable choices for a film that never really engages.  3 of 5.

Saturday for me will include an early Foxcatcher and a late Birdman...in between...still figuring it out...Red Army looks like a real possibility.

And someone please tell me that Michael Keaton is going to put in a surprise appearance!



SATURDAY'S TBA'S AND SNEAKS

From the www.telluridefilmfestival.org website:

Saturday TBAs

1:30PM - DIPLOMACY - Masons

3:30PM - WILD TALES - Masons 

4:00PM - THE IMITATION GAME - Palm

5:00PM - Great Expectations - Le Pierre

8:45PM - WHERE EAGLES DARE - Masons 

10:45PM - (SNEAK) ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST- Palm

SNEAK PREVIEW ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST Masons/Sat 10:45P 

Nick (Josh Hutcherson) and Dylan (Brady Corbet), two Canadian brothers, discover an idyllic surfing beach on the coast of Colombia, where Nick eyes Maria (Claudia Traisac), an idealistic local girl who works with the poor. But this love story has a dark side: Maria’s wealthy, very protective uncle is Pablo Escobar (Benicio Del Toro), the country’s biggest narco-trafficker, and one of the most dangerous men alive. Writer-director Andrea Di Stefano ingeniously mixes fact and fiction in this disturbing thriller, with Hutcherson (Jennifer Lawrence’s love interest in the Hunger Games movies) giving a touching performance as an ordinary guy stumbling headlong into terror and violence, holding his own opposite one of the most charismatic actors alive. And Del Toro, with his mixture of avuncular sweetness, self-mythologizing grandiosity and cobra-like cruelty, may well have been born to play Escobar. (France-Spain-Belgium, 2014, 120m) In person: Andrea Di Stefano

Second screening: CJC/Sun 12:15P Q&A

SNEAK THE CLARITY OF PEACE Herzog/Monday 9:15a Q&A

Errol Morris is best known for his interrogations of humanity's dark complexity, including portrayals of two American engineers of war, Robert McNamara, in THE FOG OF WAR (TFF 30) and Donald Rumsfeld, in THE UNKNOWN KNOWN (TFF 40). Here, Morris turns his camera 180 degrees, creating three inspiring portraits of courageous figures who dare to confront the worst Goliaths of our times. In THE DREAM, the Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee recounts the coalition of Liberian women whom, without brandishing a weapon or uttering a word of disrespect, stopped one of the longest, most vicious wars in modern history. THE SHIPYARD shows how Lech Walesa, a Polish electrician and Nobel Laureate, rallied workers to challenge the repressive Soviet Union, succeeding where 30-plus years of Cold War aggression failed. And in THE MOMENT, rockstar Bob Geldof tells how he transformed his commitment and some guilt (along with a phenomenal Rolodex) into an ongoing, 30-year struggle to eradicate hunger in Africa. Morris, one of cinema’s most insightful, inquisitive and expressionistic artists, reminds us of his deep, heartful comprehension of the indomitable human spirit. He created these films in conjunction with the New York Times’ Op-Docs series (U.S., 2014, 49m total). In person: Errol Morris

Seminar Elks Park/Saturday Noon

THE FORTY-YEAR PENDULUM: HOW DOES TODAY'S CINEMA REFLECT THE LEGACY OF THE 1970s? 

With Francis Coppola, Werner Herzog, Walter Murch, Volker Schlöndorff, Wim Wenders, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Ethan Hawke

Moderated by Annette Insdorf

• 
  

Telluride #41 Day One: Lineup/Program Guide/Plans/Rate Those Films!/Check Back In!

TELLURIDE #41 DAY ONE

Hello Film Fans!  Let the games begin...

First of all, what a great lineup we have this year.  If the films that have been programmed live up to the hype, we are in for a fantastic weekend.

Here's the Press Release again with the films that were announced yesterday:

41st Telluride Film Festival is proud to present the following 25 new feature films to play in its main program:

·       THE 50 YEAR ARGUMENT (d. Martin Scorsese, David Tedeschi, U.K.-U.S., 2014)

·       ’71 (d. Yann Demange, U.K., 2014)

·       99 HOMES (d. Ramin Bahrani, U.S., 2014)

·       BIRDMAN (d. Alejandro González Iñárritu, U.S., 2014)

·       DANCING ARABS (d. Eran Riklis, Israel-Germany-France, 2014)

·       THE DECENT ONE (d. Vanessa Lapa, Australia-Israel-Germany, 2014)

·       DIPLOMACY (d. Volker Schlöndorff, France-Germany, 2014)

·       FOXCATCHER (d. Bennett Miller, U.S., 2014)

·       THE GATE (d. Régis Wargnier, France-Belgium-Cambodia, 2014)

·       THE HOMESMAN (d. Tommy Lee Jones, U.S., 2014)

·       THE IMITATION GAME (d. Morten Tyldum, U.K.-U.S., 2014)

·       LEVIATHAN (d. Andrey Zvgagintsev, Russia, 2014)

·       THE LOOK OF SILENCE (d. Joshua Oppenheimer, Denmark-Indonesia-Norway-Finalnd-U.S., 2014)

·       MADAME BOVARY (d. Sophie Barthes, U.K.-Belgium, 2014)

·       MERCHANTS OF DOUBT (d. Robert Kenner, U.S., 2014)

·       MOMMY (d. Xavier Dolan, Canada, 2014)

·       MR. TURNER (d. Mike Leigh, U.K., 2014)

·       THE PRICE OF FAME (d. Xavier Beauvois, France, 2014)

·       RED ARMY (d. Gabe Polsky, U.S.-Russia, 2014)

·       ROSEWATER (d. Jon Stewart, U.S., 2014)

·       THE SALT OF THE EARTH (d. Wim Wenders, Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, Brazil-Italy-France, 2014)

·       TALES OF THE GRIM SLEEPER (d. Nick Broomfield, U.K.-U.S, 2014)

·       TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT (d. Luc Dardenne, Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Belgium-Italy-France, 2014)

·       WILD (d. Jean-Marc Valleé, U.S., 2014)

·       WILD TALES (d. Damián Szifrón, Argentina-Spain, 2014)

Additional Sneak Previews may play outside the main program and will be announced on the Telluride Film Festival website over the course of the four-day weekend. Visit the TFF website for updates

 www.telluridefilmfestival.org.

The 2014 Silver Medallion Awards, given to recognize an artist’s significant contribution to the world of cinema, go to German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff who will present his latest work DIPLOMACY as part of the Tribute program, his 1992 collaboration with Billy Wilder, BILLY, HOW DID YOU DO IT? and his 1970 film BAAL starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder, both of which will play elsewhere in the program; Two-time Academy award-winning actress Hilary Swank (BOYS DON’T CRY, MILLION DOLLAR BABY) who stars in TFF selection, THE HOMESMAN; and in celebration of its 35^th Anniversary, Francis Ford Coppola’s APOCALYPSE NOW – screened from a new DCP of the original theatrical cut - including guests Coppola, screenwriter John Milius, producer-casting director Fred Roos, cinematographer Vittorio Storaro and editor-sound designer Walter Murch.

Guest Directors Guy Maddin and Kim Morgan, who serve as key collaborators in the Festival’s program, present the following six films:

·       CALIFORNIA SPLIT (d. Robert Altman, U.S., 1974)

·       IL GRIDO (d. Michelangelo Antonioni, Italy, 1957)

·       M (d. Joseph Losey, U.S., 1951)

·       A MAN’S CASTLE (d. Frank Borzage, U.S., 1933)

·       THE ROAD TO GLORY (d. Howard Hawks, U.S., 1936)

·       WICKED WOMAN (d. Russell Rouse, U.S., 1953)

Additional film revivals include CHILDREN OF NO IMPORTANCE (d. Gerhard Lamprecht, Germany, 1926) and TOO MUCH JOHNSON (d. Orson Welles, U.S., 1938) both presented by the Pordenone Silent Film Festival with live accompaniment by Donald Sosin; a collection of short films by Carroll Ballard forming the program, CARROLL BALLARD: SEEMS LIKE ONLY YESTERDAY; and WHERE EAGLES DARE (d. Brian G. Hutton, U.S., 1968) from a print courtesy of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Backlot, Telluride’s intimate screening room featuring behind-the-scenes movies and portraits of artists, musicians and filmmakers, will screen the following nine programs:

·       BERTOLUCCI ON BERTOLUCCI (d. Walter Fasano, Luca Guadagnino, Italy, 2013)

·       FORBIDDEN FILMS (d. Felix Moeller, Germany, 2014)

·       HOW TO SMELL A ROSE (d. Les Blank, Gina Leibrecht, U.S.-France, 2014)

·       I STOP TIME (d. Gunilla Bresky, Sweden-Russia, 2014)

·       KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON (d. Alan Hicks, U.S., 2014)

·       MAGICIAN (d. Chuck Workman, U.S., 2014)

·       NIGHT WILL FALL (d. André Singer, U.K.-U.S.-Israel, 2014)

·       SEYMOUR (d. Ethan Hawke, U.S., 2014)

·       SOCIALISM (d. Peter von Bagh, Finland, 2014)

Here's a re-post of my "Final Fifteen" from yesterday.  MTFB: pretty good this year, though admittedly, the Toronto decision made this an easier proposition.

15) The Homesman
14) Red Army
13) '71
12) 99 Homes
11) The Look of Silence
10) Merchants of Doubt
9) Rosewater
8) Two Days, One Night
7) Wild Tales
6) Wild
5) Leviathan
4) Foxcatcher
3) The Imitation Game
2) Birdman
1) Mr. Turner

The other note about all of this is that if you go back and look at the first "Ten Bets" I posted at the end of June, eight of those films ended up on the program that was announced today.

As to TBAs/Sneaks...as always the program guide says that the fest "may" schedule "sneak previews".  I have a feeling we'll have at least one and perhaps two.  The best evidence is the pre-scheduled TBA on Sunday at The Chuck at about 12:30.  What might it be?  I got nothing...yet.  I'll keep an ear to the ground.


PROGRAM GUIDE

Speaking of the Program Guide, here's the link to the pdf (as of Thursday evening)

http://telluridefilmfestival.org/pdfs/41st_TFF_program_guide_FINAL.pdf


PLAN FOR TODAY:

"Rosewater" trailer (YouTube)

The Mrs. and I plan to attend this morning's Patron Brunch and do some hobbing and nobbing.  Following that, I plan to check in to the Press meet-up followed by the Patron Screening at the Chuck.  Word is that there will be a World Premiere for that presentation.

Following that, we'll grab some grub at the Opening Night Feed and then try to catch "The Imitation Game" and then end the day with Jon Stewart's "Rosewater".  We end the day with Stewart most weeknights anyway so this should feel very natural.

I am stoked!

And then there are the announced guests:

Francis Ford Coppola
Steve Carell
Channing Tatum
Hilary Swank
Tommy Lee Jones
Reese Witherspoon
Laura Dern
Benedict Cumberbatch
Jon Stewart
George Segal
Ethan Hawke

Could there be unannounced guests?  It wouldn't surprise me.

RATE THOSE FILMS

Now that we're down to Telluride weekend, here's your reminder...Don't forget to join in on "The People's Telluride".  Rate the films you see this week on a 0-5 scale ( 0 being just abysmal and 5 being a masterpiece).  You can rate each day or do them all at the end of the fest.  Send film ratings to me via Twitter (@Gort2) or email me at michael_speech@hotmail.com or comment to the blog itself.

I'll collect all of that data and post the collective ratings from we, The People.

And don't miss "The Professional's Telluride".  I'm also canvassing a broad number of film critics, bloggers and industry pros and will be posting their results next week as well.  So far I have these fine folks who have agreed to participate:

Alex Billington/FirstShowing
Greg Ellwood/HitFix
Eric Kohn/IndieWire
Tomris Laffly/Film Journal
Eugene Novikov/Film Blather
John Rhodes/Screencraft
Sasha Stone/Awards Daily
Kristopher Tapley/HitFix-InContention
Anne Thompson/Thompson on Hollywood

CHECK BACK IN

Check back here at the blog site for news, mini-reviews and TBAs and also follow me on Twitter for breaking news and such @Gort2.

Telluride Lineup Unveiled...Seems Early Again This Year

TELLURIDE'S OFFICIAL LINEUP ANNOUNCED:

From The Telluride Film Festival Press Release:

41st TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES PROGRAM LINEUP

41st edition plays host to 25 new feature films in its main program

Tribute programs honoring Volker Schlöndorff, Hilary Swank and the 35^th Anniversary of Apocalypse Now

Telluride, CO (August 28, 2014) – Telluride Film Festival, presented by the National Film Preserve, today announced its official program selections for the 41st edition of Telluride Film Festival. TFF’s annual celebration of artistic excellence brings together cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and artists to discover the best in world cinema in the beautiful mountain town of Telluride, Colorado. TFF will screen 85 feature films, short films and revivals representing twenty-eight countries, along with special artist Tributes, Conversations, Panels, Education Programs and Festivities.

Telluride Film Festival takes place Friday, August 29 - Monday, September 1, 2014.

41st Telluride Film Festival is proud to present the following 25 new feature films to play in its main program:

·       THE 50 YEAR ARGUMENT (d. Martin Scorsese, David Tedeschi, U.K.-U.S., 2014)

·       ’71 (d. Yann Demange, U.K., 2014)

·       99 HOMES (d. Ramin Bahrani, U.S., 2014)

·       BIRDMAN (d. Alejandro González Iñárritu, U.S., 2014)

·       DANCING ARABS (d. Eran Riklis, Israel-Germany-France, 2014)

·       THE DECENT ONE (d. Vanessa Lapa, Australia-Israel-Germany, 2014)

·       DIPLOMACY (d. Volker Schlöndorff, France-Germany, 2014)

·       FOXCATCHER (d. Bennett Miller, U.S., 2014)

·       THE GATE (d. Régis Wargnier, France-Belgium-Cambodia, 2014)

·       THE HOMESMAN (d. Tommy Lee Jones, U.S., 2014)

·       THE IMITATION GAME (d. Morten Tyldum, U.K.-U.S., 2014)

·       LEVIATHAN (d. Andrey Zvgagintsev, Russia, 2014)

·       THE LOOK OF SILENCE (d. Joshua Oppenheimer, Denmark-Indonesia-Norway-Finalnd-U.S., 2014)

·       MADAME BOVARY (d. Sophie Barthes, U.K.-Belgium, 2014)

·       MERCHANTS OF DOUBT (d. Robert Kenner, U.S., 2014)

·       MOMMY (d. Xavier Dolan, Canada, 2014)

·       MR. TURNER (d. Mike Leigh, U.K., 2014)

·       THE PRICE OF FAME (d. Xavier Beauvois, France, 2014)

·       RED ARMY (d. Gabe Polsky, U.S.-Russia, 2014)

·       ROSEWATER (d. Jon Stewart, U.S., 2014)

·       THE SALT OF THE EARTH (d. Wim Wenders, Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, Brazil-Italy-France, 2014)

·       TALES OF THE GRIM SLEEPER (d. Nick Broomfield, U.K.-U.S, 2014)

·       TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT (d. Luc Dardenne, Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Belgium-Italy-France, 2014)

·       WILD (d. Jean-Marc Valleé, U.S., 2014)

·       WILD TALES (d. Damián Szifrón, Argentina-Spain, 2014)

Additional Sneak Previews may play outside the main program and will be announced on the Telluride Film Festival website over the course of the four-day weekend. Visit the TFF website for updates www.telluridefilmfestival.org.

The 2014 Silver Medallion Awards, given to recognize an artist’s significant contribution to the world of cinema, go to German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff who will present his latest work DIPLOMACY as part of the Tribute program, his 1992 collaboration with Billy Wilder, BILLY, HOW DID YOU DO IT? and his 1970 film BAAL starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder, both of which will play elsewhere in the program; Two-time Academy award-winning actress Hilary Swank (BOYS DON’T CRY, MILLION DOLLAR BABY) who stars in TFF selection, THE HOMESMAN; and in celebration of its 35^th Anniversary, Francis Ford Coppola’s APOCALYPSE NOW – screened from a new DCP of the original theatrical cut - including guests Coppola, screenwriter John Milius, producer-casting director Fred Roos, cinematographer Vittorio Storaro and editor-sound designer Walter Murch.

Guest Directors Guy Maddin and Kim Morgan, who serve as key collaborators in the Festival’s program, present the following six films:

·       CALIFORNIA SPLIT (d. Robert Altman, U.S., 1974)

·       IL GRIDO (d. Michelangelo Antonioni, Italy, 1957)

·       M (d. Joseph Losey, U.S., 1951)

·       A MAN’S CASTLE (d. Frank Borzage, U.S., 1933)

·       THE ROAD TO GLORY (d. Howard Hawks, U.S., 1936)

·       WICKED WOMAN (d. Russell Rouse, U.S., 1953)

Additional film revivals include CHILDREN OF NO IMPORTANCE (d. Gerhard Lamprecht, Germany, 1926) and TOO MUCH JOHNSON (d. Orson Welles, U.S., 1938) both presented by the Pordenone Silent Film Festival with live accompaniment by Donald Sosin; a collection of short films by Carroll Ballard forming the program, CARROLL BALLARD: SEEMS LIKE ONLY YESTERDAY; and WHERE EAGLES DARE (d. Brian G. Hutton, U.S., 1968) from a print courtesy of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Backlot, Telluride’s intimate screening room featuring behind-the-scenes movies and portraits of artists, musicians and filmmakers, will screen the following nine programs:

·       BERTOLUCCI ON BERTOLUCCI (d. Walter Fasano, Luca Guadagnino, Italy, 2013)

·       FORBIDDEN FILMS (d. Felix Moeller, Germany, 2014)

·       HOW TO SMELL A ROSE (d. Les Blank, Gina Leibrecht, U.S.-France, 2014)

·       I STOP TIME (d. Gunilla Bresky, Sweden-Russia, 2014)

·       KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON (d. Alan Hicks, U.S., 2014)

·       MAGICIAN (d. Chuck Workman, U.S., 2014)

·       NIGHT WILL FALL (d. André Singer, U.K.-U.S.-Israel, 2014)

·       SEYMOUR (d. Ethan Hawke, U.S., 2014)

·       SOCIALISM (d. Peter von Bagh, Finland, 2014)

“When we finish putting together the program there is a moment of absolute joy,” said Telluride Film Festival executive director Julie Huntsinger. “We never know what the film world will bring us when we set out each year, but with incredible gratitude to the filmmakers and artists and satisfaction in knowing we have screened everything imaginable, we are once again thrilled to present the absolute best in new American and world cinema and treasured films from the past. We hope our audience will be as inspired as we are. “ 

Telluride Film Festival annually celebrates heroes of cinema who preserve, honor and present great movies. The 2014 Special Medallion award goes to Cineteca di Bolognaand Gian Luca Farinelli for the significant role played in film restoration and preservation of film culture. JOYFUL LAUGHTER, Mario Monicelli’s masterpiece from 1960 is a recent example of Bologna’s restorative work and will screen as part of the program.

Telluride Film Festival’s SHOWcase for Shorts features fourteen short films chosen to precede select feature films; Filmmakers of Tomorrow includes three programs:Student Prints, Great Expectations, and Calling Cards from eighteen emerging filmmakers.

Telluride Film Festival’s Education Programs present students the opportunity to experience film as an art and expand participants’ worldview through film screenings and filmmaker discussions. The Student Symposium provides 54 graduate and undergraduate college students a weekend-long immersion in cinema. The City Lights Project, now in its 15th year, brings 21 high school students and seven teachers from four divergent schools the opportunity to participate in a concentrated program of screenings and discussions. FilmLAB offers a master-class program for UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television graduate filmmaking students. The Roger Ebert/TFF University Seminars give university professors and students the opportunity to travel to the Festival each year to participate in special programming and to attend screenings throughout the weekend.

Telluride Film Festival’s Talking Heads programs allow attendees to go behind the scenes with the Festival’s special guests. Six Conversations take place between Festival guests and the audience about cinema and culture, and three outdoor Noon Seminars feature a panel of Festival guests discussing a wide range of film topics. These programs are free and open to the public.

Various Festivities will take place throughout the Festival including Book Signings with Cheryl Strayed (Wild), Maziar Bahari (Then They Came for Me), Sayed Kashua (Dancing Arabs), Werner Herzog (A Guide for the Perplexed), and Ted Hope (Hope for Film); Quincy Jones presents: Justin Kauflin in Concert, music from KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON; andBehind the Scenes: Feast and Lava where makers of Disney’s FEAST and Pixar’s LAVA share their inspiration behind and creation of two memorable animation films.

Stories and analysis here:


http://variety.com/2014/film/news/telluride-film-festival-2014-lineup-program-1201292542/


http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/telluride-lineup-packed-awards-contenders-728328


http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/birdman-wild-imitation-game-and-an-apocalypse-now-treat-set-for-2014-telluride-fest%20fest